TaylorMade P790 Irons
TaylorMade — TaylorMade P790 Irons · By Lauryl · Nov 23, 2025
The iron that defined the players' distance category keeps evolving — and the 2025 version might be its most complete yet.
The Big Picture
It's hard to overstate the P790's significance in the iron market. When the original launched in 2017, "players' distance" wasn't really a category. Now it's the second-largest iron segment in golf, and the P790 remains the benchmark by which everything else is measured. Entering its fifth generation for 2025, TaylorMade claims this version is faster, more forgiving, and better-feeling than any P790 before it.
The construction uses a forged hollow-body design with an 8620 carbon steel body and a new 4340M forged face that's 20 percent stronger than the previous generation, allowing it to be thinner and faster. SpeedFoam Air fills the internal cavity for sound and feel management. FLTD CG (Flighted Center of Gravity) uses up to 40 grams of strategically placed tungsten to produce easy-launching long irons, forgiving mid-irons, and spinner, more controllable scoring clubs. Updated stabilization bars are tuned individually for each loft to control vibrations and refine the acoustic response.
The target audience is broad — officially 5-15 handicaps, but in practice you'll find P790s in bags from near-scratch golfers to aspirational 20-handicappers. That versatility has always been its greatest strength.
At Address
The 2025 P790 is the best-looking version to date. TaylorMade has shaved the topline slightly and refined the sole geometry, making the profile more compact and players-iron-like than previous generations. The updated logo placement, Tour Satin Scratch finish, and mirror polish on the backbar give the set a clean, modern aesthetic that reads as premium without being flashy. At address, the blade length is generous enough to inspire confidence but not so big that it screams game-improvement. It's a visually inviting iron that appeals to golfers who want performance without compromise on looks.
P790 iron positioned behind golf ball at address on white background
The head does appear slightly bigger than the P770 side by side, but in isolation, you'd call this a handsome, refined iron. TaylorMade has threaded the needle between aspirational and approachable.
Sound & Feel
The P790 has historically been the one area where hollow-body construction shows its hand. Previous generations had a tendency toward a slightly hollow sound at impact that didn't quite match the visual refinement. The 2025 version makes meaningful progress here. The individually tuned stabilization bars and updated internal geometries produce a more dampened, responsive feel — fast off the face with genuine feedback on where you struck the ball. It's not the buttery softness of a forged blade, but it's the best a P790 has ever felt. The forged face contributes a great feel at impact, and the SpeedFoam Air does its job managing the hollow-body acoustics.
On pure center strikes, the sensation is one of explosive speed with solid feedback. Mishits retain a surprising amount of that quality, which is part of what makes the P790 so confidence-inspiring. You don't get punished sonically or through the hands the way you do with compact players' irons.
Performance
Ball Speed & Distance
Distance is the P790's headline act, and the 2025 model delivers. The new 4340M face produces a sweet spot that's 24 percent larger than the previous generation, and TaylorMade claims more consistent speed and launch conditions across the face. In testing, I saw 7-iron carry distances averaging 171-180 yards depending on conditions and shaft setup, with total distances running out to the mid-180s. The Thru-Slot Speed Pocket in the longer irons is particularly effective on low-face strikes, maintaining ball speed where many golfers actually make contact.
Close-up of P790 iron face showing grooves and thin topline
The important distinction with the 2025 model is consistency. Previous P790s were occasionally prone to nuclear fliers — shots that flew 15-20 yards longer than expected. The larger, more uniform sweet spot seems to have tightened the spread. Plenty of distance, more predictability, fewer unpleasant surprises.
Launch & Spin
The FLTD CG technology is the engineering star of the P790 set. The CG sits lowest in the long irons, where golfers need help getting the ball airborne, and progressively moves higher through the scoring clubs for more spin and control. In practice, this translates to long irons that launch with surprising ease — high, carrying flights that land at steep enough angles to hold greens — and short irons that produce the flatter, spinner trajectories you need for precision. Average spin with the 7-iron came in around 5,000 rpm, which is on the lower side but enough for adequate stopping power given the high launch.
The Speed Pocket design varies through the set, maximizing launch and speed from the typical strike location for each iron. It's intelligent set engineering that makes the bag feel cohesive rather than like a collection of individual clubs.
Dispersion & Shot Shape
Forgiveness is excellent for the category. The dispersion window with the 7-iron stayed within about 10 yards, which is tight enough to attack pins with confidence. Ball speed consistency was impressive, with only about a 4-5 mph variation across a session — meaning your mishits still fly close to your good shots in terms of distance. That's the P790's real value proposition: it narrows the gap between your best and worst swings.
Multiple P790 irons showing back cavity design with speed pocket
Shot shaping is somewhat limited compared to compact players' irons. The P790 naturally wants to fly straight and high, and while you can certainly work it both ways, it doesn't respond as eagerly to manipulation as a P7 CB or P770. Some better players may find the flight a touch one-dimensional. For the target audience, though, that straight, consistent ball flight is the whole point.
MSRP: $1,400 (steel) / $1,500 (graphite)
Verdict
The 2025 TaylorMade P790 is a refinement of an already excellent iron, and it remains the benchmark in the players' distance category. The new face material adds meaningful speed and consistency, the FLTD CG technology produces intelligent launch and spin through the set, and the updated aesthetics make this the best-looking P790 ever. Feel has taken a genuine step forward, closing the gap with forged players' irons while retaining the distance and forgiveness that made the P790 famous.
The downsides are minor but worth noting. The price has climbed to $1,400 with steel shafts, making it one of the more expensive options in the category. And if you're gaming a recent-generation P790, the performance improvement is marginal — this is more evolution than revolution. For golfers who spin the ball naturally low, the strong lofts combined with the lower spin profile can occasionally produce shots that don't stop as quickly as you'd like. But for the vast majority of golfers in the 5-15 handicap range who want distance, forgiveness, and a sleek package, the P790 remains the textbook choice.
